PORTLAND, Ore. – Shaka Smart, one of the more well-read, media darlings in all of college basketball, seemed at a loss for words. When you’re a guy who can effortlessly quote Sun Tzu and Shakespeare, as Smart did this week, that’s hard to imagine.

But prior to his opening statement following VCU’s 63-61 loss to Indiana Saturday in the third round of the NCAA Tournament at the Rose Garden, Smart paused, contemplated, let out a big sigh and shook his head. The moment lasted 10, maybe 15 seconds, but it perfectly conveyed his state of mind better than anything he could have said.

This one hurt.

The Rams held a nine-point lead with 12:20 to play and a 61-56 advantage with less than two minutes remaining. But VCU, nearing another stunning NCAA Tournament victory, watched it slip away in a hail of missed jumpers and an unrelenting Hoosier squad. Indiana scored the final seven points of the game, while the Rams were 2-of-15 from the field, including 0-of-8 from three, in the final 12:20. After Rob Brandenberg’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer fell short, Smart was there to comfort, putting his arm around his sophomore guard as they walked back to the locker room.

When asked how long it would take to get over Saturday’s loss, Smart was honest.

“Forever,” he said. “I don’t get over games like this. I didn’t get over Butler last year. But you have to move on.

“I don’t deal well with losing, but it’s part of life. I told the guys in the locker room, we’re not going to feel sorry for ourselves.”

And they shouldn’t. The way the loss was delivered may have been heartbreaking – certainly one of the more difficult losses in recent memory – but it won’t tarnish what was great about this squad. This band of disrupters that led the nation in steals and generally made life miserable for the opposition can hang its hat on a season’s worth of success.

A year after it reached the Final Four, despite losing four of its five top scorers, VCU won a school-record 29 games, captured the Colonial Athletic Association Championship and came within a bucket of the Sweet 16.

The Final Four run shoved a mountain of unreasonable expectations VCU’s way. Internally, there was much talk within the VCU Athletic Department of “managing expectations” for the 2011-12 season because of the Rams’ youth and because the Final Four doesn’t happen every year at any school, not Kentucky or UCLA or Duke or Indiana.

Bradford Burgess ranks fourth in school history in points and led the Rams to six NCAA Tournament victories in his career.

Despite legions of energized fans and an army of media members expecting the impossible, expecting VCU to be the next big thing again, the Rams actually delivered in nearly every regard.

It didn’t start out that way. The Rams struggled in their opener against a woeful Saint Francis (Pa.) team and then dropped two of three at the Charleston Classic. But once VCU hit its stride, the Rams were practically unbeatable. VCU won 28 of its final 33 games, including 18 of the last 20. The Rams’ final four losses came by a total of 11 points.

“That’s tough to do. This loss really stings,” Brandenberg, who scored 13 points Saturday, said when asked to reflect on the positives of VCU’s season. “Once time goes on, we’ll be able appreciate each other and the season we had.”

That’s because while there were varying degrees of expectation for VCU, the only ones that mattered to Shaka Smart and his team were the ones that they created. They wanted to get better, overcome the mistakes of their youth and peak in March. They wanted to win the CAA and wreak havoc. They dangled the goal of the Sweet 16. Pretty dang close.

And more could be on the way. Six years ago, VCU hadn’t won an NCAA Tournament game in a generation. A year ago, the school had never advanced past the round of 32, now that’s seen as a reasonable goal every year. The Rams lose one senior, albeit one of the best players ever to wear black and gold, in Bradford Burgess.

But make no mistake, VCU’s ascent is real. It’s not a fluke or a one-time flash in the pan. Of course, that means there will be another mountain of expectations to climb, but I imagine the Rams and Smart like their chances.

Shaka has commented numerous times recently that this team was his best ever at following the gameplan. To me, that says that our guys are very coachable and unselfish…with nearly all of them returning next year and the motivation that this loss to IU will bring to the offseason, our best basketball is ahead us. I absolutely love the fact that VCU Basketball is in a current state where we (coaches, players and fans) expected to win that game.

The Outlook wasn’t brilliant for the VCU Five that day:
The score stood 63-61, with but 12 seconds left to play.
And when IU’s Sheehey hit that jumper for those sudden points of fame,
A sickly silence fell upon the Rams patrons of the game.

A straggling few got up to go in deep despair. The rest
Clung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast;
They thought, if only Burgess could get but a shot at that –
We’d put up even money, now, with Shaka’s planning act.

But Shaka called a timeout, to plan the final shot,
The Rams had won so many times, actually a lot.

Then from 10,000 throats and more there rose a lusty yell;
It rumbled through the Portland valley, it rattled in the dell;
It knocked upon the Oregon mountains and recoiled upon the flat,
For The Rams, The Mighty Rams, were planning their attack.

There was ease in Shaka’s manner as he stepped into the huddle;
There was pride in Shaka’s bearing as he gently started his muddle.
And when, responding to the cheers, he lightly glanced a look,
No stranger in the crowd could doubt he had reached deep into his book.

Twenty thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands together;
Ten thousand tongues applauded as he kneeled down lightly as a feather.

And now the time for planning was ticking toward the end.
The ref yelled “play ball” so the 12 seconds could begin.
The inbound went to Theius as he dribbled up the floor,
The seconds ticking faster as he swung around to score.

But at the very last second he passed the ball out to Rob,
The collective hearts of the Ram Nation loudly started to throb.
The ball sailed high and arching from behind the 3 point line,
If it would only pass through the cylinder, everything would be fine.

From the benches, black with people, there went up a muffled roar,
Like the beating of the storm-waves on a stern and distant shore.
“Get in the hole… Get in the hole…” shouted many in the crowd;
With everyone there screaming, it oh so very loud.

Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;
But there’s no joy in Ram Nation – the ball bounced up and out.

As an out of state alum, it has been a gift to watch the Rams ascend as they over the past three years. Everyone now knows VCU, and the Rams are now a national power. While this loss stung badly, as did the one to Butler last year, basketball is an imprecise game and nothing is ever guaranteed until that last whistle blows. Congrats to Coach Smart, to Brad Burgess and all the gang…you’ve made us all proud and we will be watching for next year!

2011 we had superub offensive
2012 we had superb defensive
2013 we will have both…. Its just the beginning of a legacy, and there is time to piece the puzzel. The greatest opportunities are that which lay ahead.

Fantastic season VCU. . Losses always hurt but it gives an opportunity to strenghten those weaknesses we dont always see.

Chris, we will indeed have both – but will we have the coach? I hate the thought (according to the Chicago Tribune, the probability) that VCU will have it’s 5th coach in the past 9 or 10 years. If Shaka goes, that does not bode well for what we have dreamed of – a nationally recognized power program. Instead, we will be known as the program no coach wants to stay at. I hope that’s not VCU’s ultimate legacy, but I’m getting worried.

what a wonderful season!From a slow start at Charleston, these young men showed what they are made of – excelling on and off the court. They are hardworking and each of the clearly values tem above self. As a long time fan and season ticket holder for over 25 years, I can say that the coaches and players have made us evem more proud of our team, our school and they have established the program as the most successful one in Virginia, now and for years to come. Go Rams!

Thank you for a wonderful season; thank you Coach Smart for caring about the emotions of your players and leading by example. Whatever your decision, you have given us a gret season and you have impacted the lives of so many young athletes.
GO RAMS!!

I have so much respect for Coach Smart. I really think he will not leave VCU yet. I’m hoping he wants to see this team excel next year. I’ve heard he likes Richmond and we know he loves his players. So I’m taking a leap of faith that he is not ready to move on yet.